Clinical analysis of chemotherapy-related anemia in non-small cell lung cancer patients

The objective is to analyze the clinical features and factors of non-small cell lung cancer patients with chemotherapy-related anemia to prevent and treat anemia. 78 cases of hospitalized patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer treated with chemotherapy from January 2008 to October 2014 were recruited as subjects. The anemia information after chemotherapy was analyzed to understand the clinical features and the factors of anemia after chemotherapy. The incidence of anemia after chemotherapy was 82.05%, while the rate moderate and severe anemia was 34.61%. No significant difference was observed from the incidence of anemia after chemotherapy in patients in terms of gender. Among the stage IV patients, patients with bone metastasis has higher incidence of anemia after chemotherapy when compared with patients without bone metastasis (P < 0.05). Non-small cell lung cancer has a higher incidence of anemia after chemotherapy, patients should be given attention on the anemia therapy in addition to other clinical treatment. Patients with bone metastases are more prone to have anemia after chemotherapy thus, early intervention should be taken to reduce the incidence of anemia

Genome-wide association study for intramuscular fat content in Chinese Lulai black pigs

Objective Intramuscular fat (IMF) content plays an important role in meat quality. Identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and genes related to pig IMF, especially using pig populations with high IMF content variation, can help to establish novel molecular breeding tools for optimizing IMF in pork and unveil the mechanisms that underlie fat metabolism. Methods We collected muscle samples of 453 Chinese Lulai black pigs, measured IMF content by Soxhlet petroleum-ether extraction method, and genotyped genome-wide SNPs using GeneSeek Genomic Profiler Porcine HD BeadChip. Then a genome-wide association study was performed using a linear mixed model implemented in the GEMMA software. Results A total of 43 SNPs were identified to be significantly associated with IMF content by the cutoff p<0.001. Among these significant SNPs, the greatest number of SNPs (n = 19) were detected on Chr.9, and two linkage disequilibrium blocks were formed among them. Additionally, 17 significant SNPs are mapped to previously reported quantitative trait loci (QTLs) of IMF and confirmed previous QTLs studies. Forty-two annotated genes centering these significant SNPs were obtained from Ensembl database. Overrepresentation test of pathways and gene ontology (GO) terms revealed some enriched reactome pathways and GO terms, which mainly involved regulation of basic material transport, energy metabolic process and signaling pathway. Conclusion These findings improve our understanding of the genetic architecture of IMF content in pork and facilitate the follow-up study of fine-mapping genes that influence fat deposition in muscle

TAMEP are brain tumor parenchymal cells controlling neoplastic angiogenesis and progression

Aggressive brain tumors like glioblastoma depend on support by their local environment and subsets of tumor parenchymal cells may promote specific phases of disease progression. We investigated the glioblastoma microenvironment with transgenic lineage-tracing models, intravital imaging, single-cell transcriptomics, immunofluorescence analysis as well as histopathology and characterized a previously unacknowledged population of tumor-associated cells with a myeloid-like expression profile (TAMEP) that transiently appeared during glioblastoma growth. TAMEP of mice and humans were identified with specific markers. Notably, TAMEP did not derive from microglia or peripheral monocytes but were generated by a fraction of CNS-resident, SOX2-positive progenitors. Abrogation of this progenitor cell population, by conditional Sox2-knockout, drastically reduced glioblastoma vascularization and size. Hence, TAMEP emerge as a tumor parenchymal component with a strong impact on glioblastoma progression

Phylogenetic relationships of pig breeds from Shandong province of China and their influence by modern commercial breeds by analysis of mitochondrial DNA sequences

Mitochondrial cytochrome b (Cytb) and partial control region (CR) DNA sequence of 165 individuals were sequenced to determine phylogenetic relationships of eight pig breeds (Laiwu Black, Dapulian Black, Licha Black, Yimeng Black, Yantai Black and Wulian Black, Luyan White and Changwei White) from Shandong province of China, and to what extent they were affected by modern commercial breeds (Landrace, Yorkshire and Duroc) in maternal lineage. The eight breeds from Shandong had lower maternal evolutionary divergence than the three commercial breeds. Additionally, they shared the same haplotype (T2) of Cytb. All these results suggest they may have originated from closely related maternal ancestors, if not from a single ancestor. The fact that haplotypes of Dapulian Black and Laiwu Black formed their own subclades, while those of other breeds of Shandong dispersed in the Asian clade of the tree based on CR, indicates that Dapulian Black and Laiwu Black are indigenous breeds with relatively independent maternal lineage while the other have extensively gene flow with other breeds. Except in Luyan White, no European haplotypes were found in pig breeds from Shandong, demonstrating the maternal introgression from the modern commercial pigs has had no or very little impact on the breeds from Shandong. Comparatively, CR is more suitable to analyze the phylogenetic relationships of closely related groups, whereas the four SNPs of Cytb are useful to determine whether modern commercial breeds (Duroc, Landrace and sometimes Yorkshire) were used as dam in the breeding process of new breeds or synthetic lines in China

Versatile use of microliths as a technological advantage in the miniaturization of Late Pleistocene toolkits: The case study of Neve David, Israel.

The miniaturization of stone tools, as reflected through the systematic production of bladelets and bladelet tools (microliths), characterized many industries of the Late Pleistocene, with the Levantine Epipalaeolithic serving as a well-studied example. It is commonly held that microliths were used as modular inserts in composite projectiles, while their incorporation in other tools for different tasks is generally overlooked, the latter aspect being the main focus of this paper. We present here a more inclusive approach through a case study of the Geometric Kebaran (Middle Epipalaeolithic, ca. 18,500-15,000 cal BP) site of Neve David, Mount Carmel, Israel. Recent excavations at the site exposed a variety of features, and one well-preserved shallow pit provided a large lithic assemblage with ca. 90 microliths. We studied this assemblage using both the low- and high- magnification use-wear protocols, accompanied by a range of experiments. Our results show that a) the fragmentation rate is very high in this assemblage (ca. 90%), b) most of the microliths have identifiable use-wear, c) the microliths were commonly used as inserts in composite projectiles, d) many microliths were used for functions not related to weaponry and hunting, such as wood-working, weed harvesting and meat processing. These findings strongly support the suggestion that the small insets, regardless of their specific type (trapeze, rectangle, backed/retouched bladelet), were used in a wide variety of composite tools. We argue that such a versatile approach and flexibility in the use of microliths reflect a technological advantage where a minimal set of microlithic types, produced in large numbers, could provide the required elements for weapons, as well as for a variety of cutting, processing and harvesting tools needed for mundane tasks at a large Middle Epipalaeolithic camp

TBP-based factors of fully receiving COVID-19 vaccines.

TBP-based factors of fully receiving COVID-19 vaccines.</p

Demographics.

Vaccination is the most effective strategy for preventing infectious diseases such as COVID-19. College students are important targets for COVID-19 vaccines given this population’s lower intentions to be vaccinated; however, limited research has focused on international college students’ vaccination status. This study explored how psychosocial factors from the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB; attitudes, perceived behavioral control, subjective norms, and behavioral intentions) related to students’ receipt of the full course of COVID-19 vaccines and their plans to receive a booster. Students were recruited via Amazon mTurk and the Office of the Registrar at a U.S. state university. We used binary logistic regression to examine associations between students’ psychosocial factors and full COVID-19 vaccination status. Hierarchical multiple regression was employed to evaluate relationships between these factors and students’ intentions to receive a booster. The majority of students in our sample (81% of international students and 55% of domestic students) received the complete vaccination series. Attitudes were significantly associated with all students’ full vaccination status, while perceived behavioral control was significantly associated with domestic students’ status. Students’ intentions to receive COVID-19 vaccines were significantly correlated with their intentions to receive a booster, with international students scoring higher on booster intentions. Among the combined college student population, attitudes, intentions to receive COVID-19 vaccines, and subjective norms were significantly related to students’ intentions to receive a booster. Findings support the TPB’s potential utility in evidence-based interventions to enhance college students’ COVID-19 vaccination rates. Implications for stakeholders and future research directions are discussed.</div